IPL will revolutionise cricket: Lee

Sydney, Feb 21 (IANS) Australian speedster Brett Lee said Wednesday that the onset of the million dollar Indian Premier League (IPL) will not threaten the tradition of cricket and will revolutionise the game the way World Series Cricket did in the 1970s, media here reported. While the billionaire owners of the new Twenty20 franchises bid for players in Mumbai, in an auction that lasted over 10 hours - turning some cricketers into instant millionaires - Lee declared that it would be another defining moment for international cricket.

“I think it’s definitely history. If we look back in 10 years time, this is going to be a massive landmark in cricket, I think. It’s a bit like when the World Series started,” Lee, picked for a whopping $900,000 by the Mohali team, was quoted as saying in The Daily Telegrah

The 30-year-old, like his former teammate Shane Warne, was of the opinion that the new IPL should be embraced and that the format would add more excitement to the game.

“It’s completely different from Test cricket, it’s completely different from one-day cricket. I’ve always enjoyed putting the baggy green cap on and I’ve loved playing one-day cricket, but since Twenty20 cricket has come in it’s been pretty exciting.

“To me we take it serious and enjoy it, but it’s also having a bit of fun,” he said.

Lee also supported the IPL’s auction system.

“I’m pretty excited. I think it’s a really different way to do it,” he said.